Police

News about Police, including commentary and archival articles published in The New York Times.

Chronology of Coverage

Jul. 31, 2015

Video recordings of violent altercations between police and black civilians are beginning to alter public perception of police use of force and race relations, presenting police departments across United States with challenge of winning back public trust; rising demands for use of police dashboard and body cameras have raised number of issues, including questions of whether cameras affect police behavior; some contend vast majority of nonviolent, respectful police encounters have been lost in controversy. MORE

Jul. 14, 2015

Officials in Van Meter, Iowa, cancel raffle to raise money for new police car that would have given winner permission to use Taser stun gun on a city official. MORE

Jul. 9, 2015

Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake fires Police Commissioner Anthony W Batts hours after police union issues report that criticized police department's response to riots sparked by death of Freddie Gray while in police custody; Rawlings-Blake says Batts's ouster had nothing to do with report but with fact that Batts had been hindering efforts to address surge in violent crime in the city. MORE

Jun. 30, 2015

Details that have surfaced about manhunt in northern New York State for escaped convicts Richard W Matt and David Sweat suggest search was hampered by squabbling and poor communication between federal, state and local law enforcement agencies. MORE

Jun. 28, 2015

Police departments across nation are re-examining long-held policing strategies, making major changes to how officers are trained in every aspect of their jobs; at forefront of changes are de-escalation tactics, range of methods officers use to defuse potentially violent encounters, like talking and behaving calmly and reasonably with angry or antagonistic people; efforts are largely in response to series of fatal police shootings of unarmed African-American men and boys, and to public and political pressure for more transparency. MORE

Jun. 27, 2015

Law enforcement agencies across the country post images of accused on Facebook and department websites in effort to keep public informed, but many view it as public shaming tactic. MORE

Jun. 25, 2015

New America research center has released report on number of terrorist attacks carried out in United States since September 11, 2001, finding that nearly twice as many people have been killed by non-Muslim extremists, like white supremacists and antigovernment militants, than by radical Muslims; survey of 382 police and sheriff's departments across country shows 74 percent of police officials listing antigovernment violence as one of biggest domestic threats. MORE

Jun. 23, 2015

Supreme Court strikes down Los Angeles ordinance that allowed police officers to inspect hotel and motel guest registries without a judge's permission; also clarifies rules on use of excessive force by prison officials against people awaiting trial. MORE

Jun. 21, 2015

Military police on Brazil's Marajo Island have been patrolling island on Asian water buffaloes, which are plentiful there, since 1990s; officials say buffalo-mounted unit helps soften police department's image and facilitate community relations. MORE

Jun. 21, 2015

Police in Shuangfeng County township in Hunan Province, China, arrest 13 people who illegally detained police officers and officials and invaded police station and government building in dispute over investigation into young woman's death. MORE

Jun. 13, 2015

Dramatic decrease in police presence and subsequent rise in murders in some Baltimore neighborhoods after six officers were charged in death of Freddie Gray is indicative of strained relationship between residents and law enforcement; police union officials say officers are hesitant to do their jobs out of fear they may be prosecuted while community leaders call for strong police force with accountability. MORE

Jun. 13, 2015

Jun. 3, 2015

Jim Dwyer About New York column describes proposal put forward by coalition of New York State Bar Association, District Attorneys Association of New York and Innocence Project that aims to reduce number of wrongful convictions in state; proposal includes changes in police procedures so that eyewitness testimony and confessions would be treated with same care and precaution used for physical evidence. MORE

Jun. 2, 2015

Office of Missouri Atty Gen Chris Koster releases report on 2014 traffic stops showing that police officers in state were 75 percent more likely to stop black drivers than white drivers, and 73 percent more likely to search those black drivers. MORE

May. 31, 2015

New Jersey State Trooper Anthony Raspa is killed, and his partner Trooper Gene Hong injured, when their patrol car strikes a deer on a highway in Monmouth County and veers off road into a tree. MORE

May. 31, 2015

Japan’s Keishicho Eagles, football team made up of Tokyo police officers, has played its way into X League, nation's top-level American football league; department sees sports as way to toughen its police officers. MORE

May. 30, 2015

Op-Ed article by legal scholar Jonathan M Smith asserts police unions' efforts to shield their members from accountability in matters of excessive force have played significant role in diminishing public trust; points to unions' long history of resistance to reforms; says reform is beneficial not only to communities but to officers themselves. MORE

May. 19, 2015

Pres Obama visits Camden, NJ, to celebrate its revamped police force and to rebut notion that he is insensitive to the plight of police officers on the front lines in American cities where relationship between law enforcement and black communities is tense. MORE

May. 17, 2015

Police departments across nation are encountering surge of 'pot edibles,' marijuana-infused snacks and candies that are being smuggled for resale from states where marijuana is legal; fear is that treats can fall into hands of children, or novice consumers of marijuana who may eat too much at once, fooled by deceptively slow high of pot edibles. MORE

May. 16, 2015

Pres Obama attends memorial ceremony at Capitol for police officers who have died and cites dangers of profession in speech to thousands of law enforcement officers; speech is indication of fine line Obama has walked in voicing support for law enforcement even as he has criticized police violence, particularly against young black men. MORE

May. 12, 2015

Police officials in Garland, Tex, defend security at Muhammad Art Exhibit and Contest, saying shooting could not have been prevented by Federal Bureau of Investigation memo that was sent a few hours before event was about to start. MORE

May. 10, 2015

Group of Baltimore police officers involved in arrest and eventual death of Freddie Gray presents microcosm of a department split by racial divide and affected by attendant discrimination and dysfunction. MORE

May. 10, 2015

Nicholas Kristof Op-Ed column highlights cases of rape kits going untested for decades in Cook County, Ill, to underscore degree to which rapes often are not fully investigated; suggests rapes offer window into issue of law enforcement inequality, where low-income communities, often with large minority populations, are under-served by authorities. MORE

May. 8, 2015

Pittsburgh Police Dept will revamp its hiring practices as part of settlement in federal class-action lawsuit claiming discrimination against African-American applicants; will also pay total of $985,000 to those shut out of police jobs between 2008 and 2014. MORE

May. 7, 2015

Police union sues Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, contending that they improperly forced members to grant access to personal cellphones as part of investigation that led dismissal of nine probationary officers. MORE

May. 5, 2015

Some law enforcement officials are calling for reexamination of policies governing use of force, including longstanding 21-foot rule, in midst of debate over several controversial police shootings; reform-minded officers are calling for increased training in de-escalation, but majority have expressed skepticism and complain that police are being blamed unfairly. MORE

May. 1, 2015

Data suggests that rate of police killings has risen only slightly since 2009, or not at all, despite public impression that phenomenon has accelerated following death of Michael Brown in 2014; authoritative data on use of lethal force by police is lacking nationwide, but analysis shows it is in fact an old and steady problem, and that apparent uptick is likely due to increased awareness from cell phone videos. MORE

Apr. 28, 2015

Tests show that Pedro Abad, off-duty police officer from Linden, NJ, had blood-alcohol level of .24, three times legal limit, when he drove wrong way and crashed into tractor trailer in Staten Island, killing two of his passengers. MORE

Apr. 27, 2015

Adoption of body cameras by police departments across country has led to debate over who has right to view footage; departments have begun using or testing cameras following series of controversial police killings; some departments, like Seattle, have begun uploading footage to YouTube, leading to privacy fears; many states have proposed exempting footage from public records laws, citing concern over disturbing imagery. MORE

Apr. 22, 2015

Supreme Court rules in case Rodriguez v United States that police may not prolong traffic stops in order to allow drug-sniffing dogs to inspect vehicles. MORE

Apr. 19, 2015

Police unions around United States, accustomed to reflexively defending officers following accusations of wrongdoing, are rethinking approach as public anger grows in response to series of police shootings of black men; some unions are adopting inward examination of department shortcomings, though many acknowledge difficulty of protecting officers while examining larger social picture. MORE

Apr. 14, 2015

David Brooks Op-Ed column supports having police officers use body-mounted cameras, but expresses concern that national debate seems to completely ignore issue of privacy; suggests body-mounted cameras will lead to disintegration of trust in relationship between police and citizenry; warns that while American society will be more open and transparent with cop-cams, it will also bring a saturating message of distrust. MORE

Apr. 14, 2015

Europe's Champions League soccer tournament presents challenge for security officials as they seek to limit violence between fans that marred earlier games; many police forces across continent are abandoning confrontational tactics in favor of peaceful strategies, shepherding fan groups to specific areas and limiting their contact with rivals. MORE

Apr. 11, 2015

New Mexico Gov Susana Martinez signs legislation ending practice of civil forfeiture in state; law preserves criminal forfeiture, which allows assets tied to a crime to be seized if owner is convicted. MORE

Apr. 10, 2015

New Mexico's Legislature votes unanimously to end civil forfeiture, practice allowing law enforcement authorities to seize cash and property from criminal suspects even if no charges are ever filed; hundreds of law enforcement agencies across nation depend on civil forfeiture proceeds for significant portions of their budgets, and critics say practice amounts to policing for profit. MORE

Apr. 4, 2015

New report by Massachusetts State Police and government officials contends throng of 'self-deployed' officers from Massachusetts and neighboring states rushed to Boston suburb in wake of 2013 Boston Marathon bombings lacking any coordination with police commanders; says more than 2,500 officers converged on Watertown in dangerous and uncontrolled action. MORE

Apr. 4, 2015

Police chase involving Bronx teenagers suspected of marijuana use results in six-story fall that critically injures 17-year-old Hakeem Kuta; sobering incident perpetuates debate over criminality of marijuana use and degree of intensity with which police officers pursue such arrests. MORE

Mar. 31, 2015

Arizona Gov Doug Ducey vetoes bill that would have stopped law enforcement agencies from releasing names of police officers involved in serious or fatal shootings for 60 days; Ducey expresses understanding of bill's intent to protect police officers but says it could limit transparency and increase public's distrust of law enforcement. MORE

Mar. 26, 2015

Editorial examines Justice Dept report on Philadelphia's troubled police department, noting particularly worrisome conclusions about its lethal force policies; says report points up virtues of Justice Dept's police reform program, but also indicates stiff challenges ahead in Philadelphia, where police will have to rebuild policies from the ground up. MORE

Mar. 21, 2015

Two passengers are killed in wrong-way collision when car carrying four men, including three off-duty police officers from Linden, NJ, strikes tractor-trailer on Staten Island's West Shore Expressway; car was traveling north in southbound lane after leaving strip club in early morning hours, and investigators are probing whether alcohol played a role in crash. MORE

Mar. 20, 2015

News Analysis; some Midwestern states are rolling back collective bargaining rights for government workers, including pensions and health coverage, but excluding police and firefighters; labor experts say exemptions have no substantive merit, as other public workers have much more dangerous jobs. MORE

Mar. 18, 2015

Death of young man identified only as Rafal W, due to privacy laws, spurs rioting against police in Poland; youth choked swallowing a drug packet during narcotics raid. MORE

Mar. 16, 2015

Police departments across country are adopting so-called StingRay device, which allows them to track and listen in on cellphones, but technology has come with unusual nondisclosure requirement; FBI officials have warned that any discussion of StingRay could allow criminals and terrorists to circumvent it; issue has elevated stakes in heated debate about privacy and public disclosure of government practices. MORE

Mar. 8, 2015

Daily life of Maj Mohammad Qasim of Afghan National Police in Baraki Barak district of Afghanistan shows how country's police forces are crucial to both fighting Taliban and maintaining some semblance of order in bid to retain people's loyalty to government. MORE

Mar. 7, 2015

Joe Nocera Op-Ed column faults Congress for pressuring Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives to cease trying to ban body armor-piercing bullets known as 'cop-killing bullets'; accuses Congress of reactionary behavior and bowing to National Rifle Association in opposing sensible measure that could save lives of policemen. MORE

Mar. 5, 2015

Justice Dept report contends Ferguson, Mo, behaves less like municipality and more like self-sustaining business operation, getting money by accusing poor blacks of crimes and then using revenue from from fines as revenue to feed city's budget; federal investigators cite many examples of arrests of blacks without apparent justification. MORE

Mar. 2, 2015

Deaths of six Afghan policewomen in 2013 highlights dangers and difficulties faced by female officers, and Afghan women in general, amid Western efforts to elevate their status; push to engineer gender equality following occupation of Afghanistan has often foundered, despite influx of money and programs, against deeply embedded culture of repression; remains unclear whether Western sense of equality will survive withdrawal of troops and money (Series: Women's War). MORE